TNT has struck a deal with ESPN to broadcast early-round College Football Playoff games starting in the 2024 season as NBA rights are on the line.
TNT Sports announced the news on Wednesday of a five-year deal with ESPN through the 2028 season. Under the agreement, TNT will sublicense ESPN’s rights to broadcast two first-round playoff games for each of the next five seasons. TNT will then acquire the rights to broadcast two quarterfinals each year for the remainder of the deal, starting with the 2026 season.
The news comes ahead of the newly adopted 12-team CFP format, which will be implemented for the first time after the 2024 regular season. As part of the new format, ESPN secured an extension as the exclusive rights holder for CFP broadcasts through the 2031 season, with a rights fee averaging $1.3 billion per season. It now shares these rights with TNT.
In the new format, the four highest-ranked teams will receive byes in the first round. The teams seeded 5 through 12 will compete in the opening round. The broadcasts of those four games will be divided between ESPN and TNT. From 2026, the subsequent four quarter-finals will also be divided between the two networks. ESPN will then exclusively cover the semifinals and national championships. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
What will TNT broadcasts look like in the future?
The new comes as TNT’s NBA rights are in jeopardy, a development that could have a significant impact on the network’s on-air product. TNT Sports is anchored by its NBA coverage, with much of its broadcast talent focused on league coverage.
According to a report from Sports Business Journal on Wednesday, the NBA is formalizing media rights deals with Disney/ESPN, NBC and Amazon, a development that puts TNT’s NBA rights in jeopardy following the end of its contract with the league through the 2024-2025 season.
According to the report, TNT’s parent company Warner Bros. Discovery will have the option to match NBC’s offer in an effort to retain its NBA rights, an option that could reportedly lead to legal action involving embattled CEO David Zaslav.
Losing NBA rights would likely mean the end of the beloved studio show “Inside the NBA” and open questions about the professional fates of hosts Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal, in addition to in-game broadcasters such as Kevin. Harlan and Brian Anderson.
